November 5, 2012 - Strange coincidences again.

When others get bad,

SOLAR returns to his roots. The off-kilter - a bit self-absorbed - and with a touch of the original Seleski and selfishness in him, this issue takes an almost unbelievable turn for a man trying to have everything - and a bit more. Certainly, the temptation to be many things - AND in here Phil tries to be everything to everybody. And I mean every BODY. What a selfish little piece of garbage - and certainly with that kind of power, a man wouldn't be everything that a man would aspire to be. He'd be the things a man would DESIRE to be. It feels a LOT like the original run in that first year - and it is intoxicating again. Even the art feels a throwback.

When some get good,

Spider-Man seems to falter. It's strange that Spider-Man had son much greatness going for it over its first few years, and has plunged headlong into mediocrity. Strange that over the first chunk of FF, so few iconic moments - and now they've introduced story after story of great stuff - and Spidey (along with SOLAR over the last few months), has been plagued with forgettable villains. I have often wondered if scripters and writers have any real feeling about the direction of characters. I mean, some certainly seem better than others, but the Looter?